Kukla's Korner Hockey

Category: NHL-Talk

Still, Wang says he is proud that he was able to save the Islanders from leaving Long Island nine years ago, and that it was important to him that the Island’s only professional sports team got a legitimate shot to succeed. Before Wang’s purchase of the team, many area public figures asked him to step in - an action that the financial documents show has cost him close to $300 million.

“I knew going in,” Wang said, “that I was going to lose money.”

National Hockey League Commissioner William Daly said the league is aware of Wang’s losses on the team. “His numbers are real,” Daly said. “Yes, we’re aware the Islanders lose money, a significant amount of money. And it goes back to the team’s need for a new arena.”

We’ve got a great show in store for you this week. Todd Carroll will be in the studio with me, and we’ve got an excellent guest list including Conor McKenna (Team 990), Patrick King (Sportsnet.ca), Matt Recchi (Kamloops Blazers), Jim Cummins (former NHLer), and some surprise guests as well!

All four major professional leagues in the United States—including Major League Baseball, the NBA and NHL, which all have teams in season—say they are monitoring the flu epidemic which has caused schools to close in a number of states.

Officials from MLB, the NBA and NHL all said they are relying on the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization, but are not intending to cancel games. Every baseball team is in action this weekend, while the NBA has five playoff games scheduled from Friday-Sunday, and there are six NHL games (including one in Canada).

NEW YORK (May 1, 2009) ─ The Stanley Cup™ Playoffs Conference Quarter-Finals have concluded, and the National Hockey League reports that virtually all key business metrics have continued their strong momentum from the regular season, in spite of challenging economic conditions.

During the regular season, the NHL achieved its fourth-consecutive season of record attendance, and that momentum continued. During the Conference Quarter-Finals, playoff teams played to more than 100 percent of arena capacity and averaged 18,739 fans.

Television ratings continued their momentum from the regular season and increased sharply. Viewership on NBC surged 17 percent and the network had the most-watched NHL first-round broadcast in eight years. Also, viewership rose 23 percent on VERSUS and 42 percent on TSN – helping each network to their most successful Conference Quarter-Final results ever.

Glen Healy, Director of Player Affairs for the National Hockey League Players’ Association talks NBC, NHL playoff hockey, the Ovechkin-Crosby matchup, profit-sharing and recaps round-one of the playoffs this morning on Fan590.

The NHL, its sponsors and the league’s television partners all stand to benefit from Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals reaching the second round. But so does the team’s bottom line, according to club president Dick Patrick.

With four home games in the opening round, the Capitals anticipate turning a profit of between $400,000-$500,000, Patrick said. Those figures are after the team returned an estimated 60-65 percent of its gross ticket sales revenue to the league, which redistributes the money to the revenue sharing program and to players’ postseason bonuses. The Capitals are among the teams that benefit from revenue sharing.

There were fears the economic recession would leave swaths of empty seats in NHL arenas during the playoffs, but the league says both attendance and U.S. Television ratings are up through the first round.

With fans flocking back to see good teams with star players in Chicago and Boston, the NHL says its rinks were full to 100.9 per cent capacity through the 44 first-round games, its highest figure in 16 years.

Only four games — two in Carolina and two in Anaheim — failed to sell out.

It also reports a 22 per cent increase in viewers on the Versus network in the U.S., which averaged a 0.44 cable rating, or 333,163 households and 442,301 viewers.

The National Hockey League, which loaned the Phoenix Coyotes money in February to keep the team in business, is now running the franchise and has promised Glendale that the NHL would reimburse the city for parking fees and security costs owed by the team, Glendale City Manager Ed Beasley said.

“The NHL is in charge of the team right now,” Beasley said. “We have assurances from the NHL the money will be paid . . . .We are sitting down with the NHL and working confidentially with them, and the city expects to be paid in full.”...

We have been told from the NHL that they are responsible for the team,” Beasley said.